FanNation - The Republic of Sport

I was amazed.  I couldn't take my eyes away.  I wondered how they did it.  It turned my stomach at times and the next minute you just had to stand up and cheer.  Sure, I was at Key West's Jack Flats last Saturday but I wasn't watching Purdue football.  It was Fantasy Fest and a bevy of spray painted female bodies kept walking past my stool.

I wasn't flagged for an unsportsmanlike penalty though illegal use of the hands came to mind.  The Boilermakers, though, could learn a few lessons in restraint.  By halftime, one of the least penalized Big Ten teams had 7 penalties for 65 yards.  Northwestern, on the other hand, had a restraint problem of their own, turning the ball over 3 times.  Purdue was lucky to find the locker room at half time with the scored tied 14-14.  The offense was literally on life support the second quarter and only the defense kept Purdue in the game.  But something happened at the start of the fourth quarter.  As I was beginning to think Duval Street was worth watching more than college football, Purdue's offense came alive.  Trailing by 3 points, Purdue scored 3 more touchdowns while the defense kept Northwestern scoreless.  The 35-17 final score over the Wildcats improved Purdue's season record to 7-2 and 3-2 in the Big Ten. 

Though the offense finished with a respectable 402 yards, Brock Spack's defense is what's keeping Purdue in the game.  Northwestern, known to have one of the more explosive offense's in the conference finished the day with 297 yards and 4 turnovers.  According to linebacker Dan Bick, the defense was getting tired of hearing about how great Purdue's offense was and began to take the comments personally.  Rumors of a great offensive shootout between Northwestern and Purdue hurt the feelings of the defensive unit.  They made a statement of their own.  Instead, of a shootout, the Wildcats were held to only 87 yards rushing and 17 points.  For the second game in a row, Purdue's defense sacked the quarterback five times.  During the first seven games, the defense only managed 11 sacks.  There's something special about this year's defensive unit not seen in awhile.  This isn't a unit with a few superstar standouts.  This is a group of young men playing as a team and flying under the radar screen.

If there are a hundred ways to skin a cat, maybe Purdue will find a new way this week against the Penn State Nittany Lions.  Happy Valley isn't a place for Boilermaker joy.  Purdue last defeated Penn State there in 2004 but haven't had much luck lately.  Fortunately, Ohio State beat Penn State last week, knocking Paterno's team out of the AP and Coaches Top 25 ranking.  Purdue has a worse record against ranked teams as they've had against the Nittany Lions.  If they want to keep winning, Purdue needs to play their best and a little luck along the way to State College won't hurt.

Penn State is a good team and many thought the Nittany Lions would upset Ohio State last week and return  to the national spotlight.  The Buckeyes had other ideas.  Ohio State beat Penn State by controlling the football when the Buckeyes had the ball.  Ohio State's offensive line kept Penn State away from their quarterback and Todd Boeckman found plenty of open receivers.  But let's face it, Purdue isn't Ohio State but the Boilers showed promise against the Buckeyes.  Penn State is the 12^th ranked defense in college football but has shown inconsistency throughout the year.  The Purdue offense has shown inconsistency of its own.  If the Boilers aren't careful, what happened in the Big House can become a reoccurring nightmare.  Penn State will fill the stadium with 100,000-plus fans and instead of a Ross Ade blackout, forecast calls for a Nittany Lion whiteout.  It's also Penn State's last home game of the year.  They'd like to give the students and alumni something to cheer about. 

There are no more "easy" games left on Purdue's 2007 season schedule.  Penn State is a big hurdle for the Boilers to clear and a victory on Saturday will practically assure Purdue will return for a bowl game in South Florida.  No, there won't be any colorfully painted female bodies on Duval Street this week to lure my attention from the big screen at Jack Flats.   It's a weekend of "The Meeting of the Minds," the annual phlocking of Jimmy Buffets Parrot Heads pilgrimage to the Southernmost City.  So whether it's "Fins Up" or "Boiler Up!" you can join me at Jack Flats at Noon to catch Purdue vs. Penn State on the big screen in the corner!